The First Time We Met
by ace03
Summary: Kate tells Castle about the first time they met and of saturdays spent with her mother.


The First Time We Met

"Don't tell me that's another box of shoes, because I'm not sure my closet can handle it" Castle joked as she carried in another box.

It was day two of what Castle had dubbed 'Operation: Move Kate In'. Not the most original of names he conceded but it got the point across. They had spent all of yesterday moving boxes from her old apartment to the loft and today was unpacking day.

"You better hope _our _closet can handle it" she fired back, "but no, no more shoes. Books"

"Ah your extensive collection of Richard Castle novels" Castle grinned as he ripped the tape off the box and eagerly reached inside, only for his smile to fall into a pout "Patterson! Kate!" he whined "I cant have the competition in my house! What happened to being a one writer girl?"

"I'm a fan of the genre" Kate insisted rolling her eyes at his dramatics, how he can possibly deny any resemblance to his mother she doesn't understand, "anyway, you invite the competition over all the time. Mystery writers poker nights sound familiar?"

"Fine… traitor" Castle muttered as he continued to pout and pull books out of the box. "ahh here are the Richard Castle novels. You know I can sign these for you"

Kate smiled softly in response to the grin spreading across his face.

"I think I'll be alright," she said resting a hand against his cheek "I've got the real thing" She leaned over and quickly pressed a chaste kiss to his lips before picking up the stack of Patterson books and moving towards the shelves.

"What's this one?" Castle asked after a few moments sorting through the books, carefully he held up the charred remains of a burnt book "I thought you replaced all the books damaged in the explosion"

"I did" she responded carefully taking it into her hands and caressing the blackened cover. Moving to sit next to Castle, Kate carefully opened the book to show him the title page. Most of the page was burnt and blackened but towards the bottom a signature was clearly visible

"Hey, this is my signature. When did I sign this for you?" he asked staring at the Derrick Storm novel.

"You want to hear the story of how we really met for the first time Castle?" Kate asked, a smile appearing on her face that he wants to describe as more of a smirk.

"Wait the Tisdale case wasn't the first time we met?" He looked at her bewildered, then back to the book in her hands, a frown appearing on his face as he thought back to previous book signings.

One of Kate's hands came up and started absently playing with the hairs at the nape of his neck, as she thought back to that day so many years ago.

"Okay tell me the story," Castle demanded having not been able to recall anything.

Leaning her head back against a box behind them, Kate took a moment to just stare into Castles eyes as he stared at her. Taking a deep breath she began her story.

"Growing up, whenever dad went on a fishing trip for the weekend mum and I would always spend the day together on Saturday. We'd get up far earlier than we really needed to for a weekend, and go to her favourite café for breakfast, and we'd spend the whole day just the two of us. Sometimes we would go shopping, or we'd buy a ridiculous amount of ingredients and go on a baking spree, if one of us was sick we'd curl up on the couch and watch _Temptation Lane _all day, we went ice skating a couple of times." Kate explained with that far off look in her eyes that appears whenever she talks about her mother.

"The photo we found that day?" Castle asked hesitantly

"Yeah, that was the last Saturday we ever spent just the two of us." Kate nodded, with a sad smile

"So on one of your days together you convinced her to take you to a book signing to meet my ruggedly handsome self in person" Castle grinned continuing the story for her, hoping to see Kate smile. Instead she started laughing, almost hysterically. Castle's grin fell.

"I used to hate your books" Kate admitted between bouts of laughter, "No way would I willingly go to your book signing!"

"What?!" Castle's eyes widened comically, "how could you…" He may not tease her about it often but he's always known that she was a fan. Ryan had let it slip during that first case that Beckett owned his entire collection, he's known that she was a fan long before he started following her around. So to hear that she _hated _his books was something that he never expected. "But you- you-" Castle continued to stutter.

"I hadn't even read them" Kate explained rubbing his back soothingly as her breathing returned to normal, "but mum was crazy about them, and would constantly be trying to get me to give them a chance, and the teenager that I was refused to give them a shot out of sheer stubbornness. So you can imagine my horror at realising she wanted the two of us to stand in that ridiculously long line just to get some book signed"

"Just to get some book signed! Kate you're talking about my life's work!" Castle said his outraged tone only half joking.

"I was only eighteen!" Kate defended "I didn't want to spend my Saturday waiting to get a book, that I had no intentions of ever reading, signed! I spent at least half an hour standing in that line trying to convince mum that we should just leave, before I told her that she could stay and I would meet her at home. If I wasn't so annoyed at being there in the first place I would have felt terrible because she looked so sad at the prospect of not spending our day together."

They sat there silently leaning against each other for a while, Kate remembering those Saturdays spent with her mother, and Rick simply watching her, as he was known to do, waiting for her to be ready to continue her story. Slowly her eyes refocused as se came back to the present moment a cheeky grin spreading across her face.

"You know, you're the reason I got my motorcycle," She said suddenly

"Murdercycle" Castle interjected on reflex

"Call it what you will but to convince me to stay with her while she waited for you to sign her book, mum said that the next time dad and I disagreed she would take my side." Kate laughed, "I don't think she really thought that one through. She must have thought the most we would argue about is whose turn it was to pick a movie. But instead the moment he got home I told dad that I was saving up for the bike. Mum had no choice but to say that I was perfectly responsible and could do what I wanted with my own money. Anyway, we finally got to the front of the line and mum was gushing about how much she loved your books and that they were her go-to when her job was too stressful. And you were perfectly polite, very charming. To her."

_"Thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoy them" A younger Richard Castle responded with a charming smile to Johanna Beckett, before asking "who should I make this out to?" as he accepted the book Johanna had been holding onto, his eyes shifting between the two women in front of him._

_"Johanna" the elder brunette responded adding regretfully "unfortunately I haven't been able to convince Katie to read any of your books"_

_"You don't like reading?" he asked surprise covering his face at the possibility as he directed his gaze at Kate._

_Offended, Kate took a more defensive stance crossing her arms across her chest "actually I find that after all the reading I have for my advanced lit class, I prefer reading something with a little more depth in my free time."_

_"Kate" her mother scolded_

_The shock melted from the authors face to be replaced with a smirk, "and what, may I ask, have you been reading recently? Outside of the classroom of course" he asked believing she would say the name of some teenage fiction novel._

_"Well, I started reading this last week" Kate said reaching into the canvas shoulder bag she was carrying and pulled out a thick worn out book, a purple ribbon poking out from between the pages more than halfway through the book. As she held it out Rick recognised the cover immediately having spent so much time in bookstores and libraries. _

_"Anna Karenina?" he asked, to which she nodded, a smug look appearing on her face in response to the shocked expression the author now wore, as her mother sent her a disapproving look._

_Slightly flustered at his incorrect assumptions, Rick mumbled something that sounded like 'I stand corrected', just as a blonde women made a hand motion at him. The author quickly finished signing Johanna's book and handed it back, "it was a pleasure meeting you ladies" he smiled_

_"Thank you Mr. Castle" Johanna responded accepting her book back and turning to catch up with her daughter who had already started to make her way out of the store._

_"What an ass!" the younger brunette exclaimed_

_"Katherine Houghton Beckett, I did not raise you to be so rude!" Johanna scolded_

_"Oh come on, if it were anyone other than your favourite author you would have done the same thing" Kate defended causing her mother to blush slightly_

"You mean I've met your mum?" Castle asked in a low voice, a look of awe on his face. Kate nodded her head against his shoulder where she was leaning into him, causing her hair to tickle his neck.

"I wasn't lying when I said my mother would love you," she said turning her head slightly to press her lips to the hinge of his jaw.

They both stared at the damaged book that Kate still carefully held in her hands, Castle with hundreds of questions running through his mind trying to decide which he wants to ask now.

"What convinced you to change your mind and read my books?" he finally asked, as much as he wanted to ask more about her mother, the Saturdays they spent together, which of his books she had read, he sensed that now was not the time.

"The message you had written for her" Kate replied opening the book back to the Rick's signature, her hand hovering over the blackened page. Castle leaned closer and squinted trying to decipher more than the pieces of his signature that were visible at the bottom. As he inspected the page Kate prepared herself to tell the story she wasn't sure she would ever tell him. "About a week after she was killed I found this book on her bedside table. I had been… falling. And it hit me that we would never have another one of those Saturdays together." She swallowed back the tears that threatened to fall as Castle took her hand in his comfortingly. "I opened it to this page and those words… it said: '_I hope my books forever provide you with the escape you need and give you the strength to face reality and never stop fighting._'" She recited her eyes falling closed "I read this book in one night and then practically devoured everything else you had written. Your books helped me through some of my darkest moments. Made me believe that justice could prevail."

She sat back slightly looking at him as she finished her story, gratitude and honesty shining through her eyes.

Castle was speechless, for the first time probably ever he simply could find no words capable of expressing everything he was feeling at her confession. Gently taking the book and placing it where it couldn't be damaged, he brought Kate closer to him and kissed her, trying to express everything he couldn't find the words to say. Willing her to understand how much sharing this part of her past means to him.


End file.
